10 Ways to achieve your goals in 2010

Rebecca Waldron is freelance writer who recently relocated to sunny Chandler, Arizona, from Denver. She enjoys everything from shopping and fashion to learning how to surf, and she loves spending time with her two dogs, Play Doh and Brut...

Be a goal-getter

With the New Year already off to a start, we are all trying to figure out how to accomplish our goals and come out on top next year. Maybe last year your list went unfinished, but with these tips, 2010 will be your year! Who knows maybe you will even be adding more goals to your list.

Keep a checklist

A checklist lets you see your goals visually laid out in front of you, which lets you decide chronologically what goals to complete first. Putting your goals in order keeps you from backtracking
and wasting time.

Find a friend!

This is such a simple way to start checking goals off your list. When you have someone cheering you on, no goal is unreachable; it is best to pick someone who has similar goals. If your goal is to
run a marathon or lose 10 lbs., find someone who wants to do the same -- this way you will have someone there to cheer you on when the going gets tough.

Celebrate your success

If you succeed at finishing any of your goals, big or small, celebrate! If you are crossing goals of your list, you are headed in the right direction so show yourself a little appreciation.

Have a realistic timeline

Great things rarely happen overnight. Create a timeline that is appropriate for the goal -- if your goal is to find your dream job, it most likely will not happen in a week. Think of it this way,
the bigger the goal, the more time you should spend trying to accomplish it.

Problem solve

Never give up after one try. Accept that you are not perfect and that some goals will take a few approaches before you get it right. Learn from your mistakes so that you can move in the right
direction.

Start small and work towards the big goals

Start with your small goals and use them as building blocks for the bigger goals you want to accomplish. You did not learn to swim by jumping in the deep-end so you probably will not finish your
goals by picking the hardest one first.

Set achievable goals

Do not set yourself up for failure. When we set unrealistic goals for ourselves and are unable to finish them, we tend to think we have failed. Once we see ourselves as a failure, it becomes a
roadblock for actually finishing our goals -- so instead of having unobtainable goals come up with ones you know you can finish, even if they take time.

Try not to get overwhelmed!

This is probably one of the hardest things not to do. When life does not seem to go your way, it is so easy to get flustered, just remember to breath. If you need to put your list down for a minute
and re-evaluate than do that.

Think positive

If you are not burning through your goals as quick as you thought you would, fear not. It will happen -- just try not to give up. Try to complete a simpler goal to get you back on track.

Failure is only a speed bump

So what if it takes you a couple tries to complete your goals, no one is perfect and you cannot let the thought of failure hold you down, get over it, it happens to the best of us.